A new facet of the autism epidemic is emerging. It is the plight of children born to autistic parents. This point was driven home to me as autistic children were being recruited for an investigational study that is evaluating enerceutical™ activation of the alternative cellular energy (ACE) pathway in various disease conditions, including autism. A simple non-invasive procedure for activating the ACE pathway has been shown to be very effective in suppressing both active and latent herpes simplex virus (HSV) infections. It is also designed to suppress stealth adapted viruses which, unlike conventional herpes viruses, are not actively resisted by the body’s immune system. Although still ignored by many in the autism community, there is solid scientific support for prenatal infection with stealth adapted viruses as the underlying cause of autism in the vast majority of affected children.
Some parents of autistic children have attributed their child's illness to mercury toxicity. Mercury is included in various vaccines in the form of a preservative called thimerosal. Mercury poisoning can cause neurological damage and conceivably certain children may be uniquely susceptible to its toxic effects. It is unlikely to be the underlying cause of autism, however, since neuropeptide changes are present in cord blood samples of children who subsequently become autistic. Autistic children show lower levels of mercury in hair analyses compared to normal children. This suggests that they may be accumulating mercury, possibly in the formation of ACE pigments. Litigation is underway concerning possible Industry and Government negligence in disregarding the potential toxicity of thimerosal in vaccines. It would be ironic if i ndeed the mercury obtained from the vaccines was actually being used productively by the body in the formation of ACE pigments. I now wish to report that several of the parents of children currently being recruited into the ACE pathway activation study are, themselves, on the autism spectrum. This is not unexpected as an increasing number of autistic individuals are now entering their 20’s and becoming parents. The clinical investigator on the ACE pathway activation project was struck, however, by the severity of neurological/behavioral illnesses among the children of autistic parents; and the enormous difficulties being faced by these parents in caring for their children. Unlike the more publicized internet savvy, politically outspoken, upper middle class parents of many autistic children, these autistic families are floundering under the pressures of both economic and emotional deprivation. The parents have limited skills in even accessing basic social disability and healthcare services. Reading and writing are commonly beyond their capabilities and, for many families, the responsibility for essential household management falls to grandparents or neighbors. CFS sufferers are notorious for distancing themselves from psychiatric patients. It is to be hoped that from within the competing autism support groups, much needed resources will be urgently directed towards autism’s second generation.
Kind regards, W. John Martin, MD, PhD. Institute of Progressive Medicine, Burbank CA 91502 |